When worlds cave in
by Milly Molly Mandy
Summary: Sam and Daniel get trapped in a cave offworld. What happens next?
1. Day 1

**A/N I've gone a bit nouveau with the writing of this, trying out new ideas and just seeing where it takes me really. This is set sometime in the happy seasons: when Janet wasn't dead, Jack wasn't promoted and all they had to worry about was the goa'uld… and the replicators… and caves… (Stuck in the past – moi?) It's Sam/Daniel, of course.**

When Worlds Cave In

Day One.

Major Samantha Carter scribbled something into a notebook and sat back on her haunches for a few minutes. She had to admit that geology was not one of her favourite hobbies, and while mapping caves on another planet should be an exciting experience, it really wasn't. Doctor Daniel Jackson, however, seemed to have different ideas. Of course, he was doing what he was qualified to do – translate alien languages and learn about new cultures. The caves were covered in carvings and intricate drawings – "Cave paintings" as Jack had pointed out when they had found the place.

They had been on P3D 2967 for five hours now and Sam had a feeling they would find nothing of material value, which would disappoint both General Hammond and the scientists who would be studying the data they collected. She looked around the medium sized cavern she and Daniel were working in and jotted something down in her field book. She hoped that if the geologists did find something interesting in her work they would send someone else to take a second look because she would rather be studying something mathematical right now.

"Daniel, I'm going to look down this passageway."

Her call was met with a jumble of words she didn't understand followed by an "ok". She smiled at his response and grabbed a torch from the equipment they had unceremoniously dumped in the centre of the cavern, and piece of chalk for some age old navigating techniques, before heading down an unexplored tunnel.

The whole cave system seemed to be made of large 'rooms' and adjoining tunnels, not dissimilar to Tok'ra bases, though Daniel had quickly rejected any ideas of a connection between the two. She in turn had rejected any ideas that the caves were carved by water channels due to their almost organised shapes and sizes.

Thinking about this, she paused to write something down. There was a crackle in the radio attached to her vest. "Carter, it's O'Neill, do you copy?"

"Yes Sir, loud and clear."

She paused in her writing and shone the torch around her, before marking the wall with some chalk.

"How's the rocking going?"

"Ok Sir. And the scouting?"

"Nothing here but trees and… nope that's about it."

Sam smiled and finished what she was writing.

"When do you think you'll be finished Carter?"

"I make it 1400 hrs now Sir, so by 1700 hrs?"

She heard someone murmuring as the Colonel pressed on the radio. "T says it's going dark here and we're two hours from you and three hours from the gate, so we're going to start heading back. Be finished by 1600hrs unless you want to spend the night here."

"Yes sir, over and out."

15.10

Daniel flipped through the pages in his notebook and smiled to himself. He'd worked in two caverns and judging by his notes he must have recorded down everything. Actually he knew he had: he'd been as meticulous as everyone expected him to be. He went back down the narrow tunnel connecting the two caverns he had been studying, before sitting down next to the pile of gear in the middle of the floor.  
"A bit of a chocolate break I think," he muttered to himself; unwrapping a bar and starting to chew while packing away the camera he'd been using and labelling the film rolls.

Something moved behind him and he started slightly before he saw Sam re–enter the cavern from a small tunnel he hadn't noticed earlier.

"Heya. Find anything interesting down there?"

Sam stretched and dusted herself down, before sitting down next to Daniel and helping herself to a chocolate bar. "No cave paintings if that's what you mean."

"Tired?"

"A bit. You?"

"Yeah." Daniel nodded. "I've written everything in these two caverns though so it just needs interpreting now."

"I logged and took photos of everything I came across… and I got these." Sam pulled some clear plastic bags out of her pockets, revealing a collection of fossils and small rocks.

"Fossils? Interesting. I haven't seen any animal life, have you?"

"Nope. Do you have any idea who did the drawings?"

"Not yet. None of the paintings look recent though. And the caves don't appear to have been lived in, which is strange. Why decorate a room you won't stay in?"

Sam started reorganising the pile of gear, packing away the fossils and rock samples into her pack. "Do you want these going in here too?" She asked, gesturing to the film canisters near Daniel's feet.

"I'll carry them, its fine. Did Jack say when he was coming back?" He caught Sam smiling at him. "What?"

"I knew you wouldn't be listening to the radio conversation I had with him earlier. He's aiming to be back here by –" She paused and Daniel followed her line of view to the film canisters at his feet that were beginning to move of their own free will.

"If that's what I think it is we're in big-," Daniel started as the ground began to shake.

"Cover yourself," Sam shouted and threw her arms over her head as rubble began to fall from the ceiling. Daniel copied her as a large piece of rock hit the lamp that had been lighting the cavern and plunged them into darkness.

The earthquake only lasted one minute but it felt much longer as the cave system they were in writhed and crumbled under the pressure. The ground stopped moving long before the noises of falling rock stopped but a few minutes later all was quiet.  
"Daniel, you ok?" Sam asked anxiously, switching on the torch she had in her pocket from her exploring.

"Yeah. As I was saying, big trouble." He responded lightly, straightening his glasses and squinting at the light she was shining at him. He gestured for her to lower it and she did so, swinging it around the cave.

"Big, big trouble," Sam reiterated.

Daniel looked at where the torch was pointing. "Wow."

The passageway they had come into the cave from was blocked off by a pile of rubble.

Sam reached for her radio as she swung the torch around the rest of the cavern. Daniel pulled the spare torch out of his pack, noticing as he did so that a large rock had landed where his flak–vest had been. He pushed the rock to one side and shone the torch on the vest.

"Well my radio's out," he said looking at the now flattened comms link on the gear. "Can you hear… water?" he asked, turning towards where he could hear the dripping of a liquid. The torch shone blankly at the wall of the cave, revealing nothing.

"Yeah." Sam replied uncertainly.

"I've got a bad feeling about this."  
Sam looked at the cave wall for a few moments. "You've been watching too much star wars with the Colonel," She retorted confidently, turning back to her radio. "Colonel O'Neill, do you copy?"

There was silence on the line. "Daniel, check what else has been damaged."

Daniel nodded and began rooting through the two packs on the floor.

"Colonel O'Neill, it's Major Carter, do you copy?"

There was silence again. "There isn't even static." Sam said to herself. She went over to her pack and started rummaging inside it, before pulling out a screwdriver. Daniel raised his eyebrows at her before realising the gesture was useless in the light of two torches.

"What are you doing?"

"The radio's broken."

"These packs don't appear to be damaged."

"Good. Do an inventory of what we've got. Erm…" Sam thought for a few minutes. "Check what tools we've got with us, what water we've got and what clothing we've got."

Daniel nodded.

15.30

"Ok I think it's working now." Sam smiled to herself.

Daniel looked up from his re-packing of their gear. "Sam?"

"Hmm?"

"The batteries got squashed."

"The torch batteries?"

"Yeah. These two torches are all we've got."

"Colonel O'Neill, do you copy? Over." She asked into the radio.

There was static over the speaker. "CARTER, where the hell have you been?!"

"Nice to talk to you too Sir."  
"Update me Carter."

"There was an earthquake. The cave entrance is destroyed and the radio was broken."

"Roger, we felt it too. So you're trapped in the cave?"

Daniel, who'd been looking at the other tunnels, voiced his assent.

"Yes Sir. I don't know how bad it is though. Its pitch black in here except for the two torches."

"Are you and Daniel injured?"

"Negative Sir. One radio and the spare batteries are destroyed. We're just doing an inventory."

"Right. Turn the torches off and wait for our arrival. Teal'c and I'll be there in 30 minutes. Over and Out."

Sam watched Daniel turn off the torch. "Roger that Sir."

She did the same. They were plunged into black.

"Wow. It's like being blind. I can't even see my hand in front of my face." Daniel said, waving his hand in front of his face.

"Did you do an inventory?" Sam asked, slowly settling into a comfortable position and pocketing the torch.

"2 space blankets, 2 spare sets of clothing, med kits, 2 full water bottles, 8 ration packs, matches, 2 gas stoves and some ammo. And science equipment."

"No weapons?"  
"They got squashed."

"Can't shoot our way out then. Shame, it's worked so well in the past."

Daniel smiled.

16.03

"Carter, come in."

"We're here Sir."

"As are we. You were right about the cave collapse. You sure you and Daniel are ok?"

"Yes Sir, what's the damage?"

"I can only get 10 metres down the passage. There's a big wall of rubble in front of me."

"Moveable?"

"With more man power."

Sam did a few calculations in her head. "So there's still 20m of possibly blocked passage between us and the exit?"

"Yeah Carter. Listen, I'm going to head back to the gate. T's going to set up a camp outside the entrance of the cave with the gear from the MALP. You'd better prepare to stay there the night. Do you have gear?"

"Yes Sir."

"Roger that. Maintain hourly checks. I'll be back as soon as I can."

"Yes Sir."

The cave went silent.

"Sam?"

"Yeah?"

"Just trying to work out where you are. If we're going to sit in darkness perhaps we ought to move ourselves and the gear together."

Sam heard movement and the sounds of Daniel picking the two packs off the floor. She reached into her pocket and pulled out the torch.

"Here." She switched on the light and Daniel walked over and sat next to her, placing the rucksacks beside them.

"Thanks." He thought about the situation they were in. It was a novel one for them at least. There wasn't really any risk of imminent danger. 'Actually,' started a voice in his head, 'hypothermia, aftershocks from the earthquake, further cave collapse…'

"Sam?"

"Yeah?"

He paused, trying to detect from the tone of her voice what she was thinking. He couldn't, and it struck him how much he used visual features to understand all of his team mates behaviour. "You ok?"

"Yeah."

"Honestly."

"Just a bit surprised."

"At what?"

"Being trapped in a cave. I mean, here was I thinking this was a nice simple - dare I say slightly monotonous recon mission, and now I'm settling down for a night in a black cave."

"You should know by now this job is never predictable."

"You're right; I should've expected this."

Daniel smiled. "Or something like this."

"I was more prepared for an attack from hostiles. That'll probably happen now the weapons are destroyed."

"Well there's no way they can get in here so we're safe. Relatively speaking. No need to keep watch at least."

"There's nothing to watch anyway."

Daniel handed Sam the space blanket he unpacked from the gear beside him, before pulling the second out for himself. He heard Sam move next to him as they wrapped themselves in the blankets. Already he was starting to feel the cold, and he was reminded of how swiftly hypothermia could set in.

"We'll have to be careful with the cold this evening," stated Sam, voicing his thoughts. He saw her watch light flicker on and briefly some of her features were illuminated.

"It's only 16:20. It's going to be a long night."

"On the upside we haven't had an evening in together for quite a while now." Daniel replied cheerfully, settling into a more comfortable position. "Do you want something to eat? I could start a gas stove?"

"I'm fine. And we may need the stoves later. How are you anyway Daniel?" She asked, changing her tone to a less serious one.

"I'm good."

"You're right; we haven't hung out for ages."

"We've both had quite a lot of projects on."

"Yup. Oh, which reminds me, I don't think I told you but…" Sam started to explain the findings of some research she had been doing earlier in the week.

17.02

"Major Carter, Daniel Jackson, do you copy?"

"Roger Teal'c," replied Sam, pausing Daniel in his discussion of a project he'd been thinking about.

"Are you both well?"

"We're fine. You?"

"I am well. I shall radio in one hour if there is nothing you need."

"Thanks Teal'c, over and out."

They sat in silence for a few minutes. Sam looked around for a gap of light somewhere in the cave, only to be disappointed again.

"It's very annoying not being able to see anything. This must be what blind people feel like all the time."

"I know what you mean – my eyes are open but they might as well not be - actually I'm still wearing my glasses."

Sam chuckled at the idea. "Do you have anywhere safe to put them?"

"In my gear somewhere." She heard a zip undoing to her right and presumed Daniel was rummaging in his rucksack. She listened to the noises for a few moments, trying to guess what he was doing.

"Do you want a torch?" She asked finally, when she thought he had given up trying to find his glasses case.

"It's ok, I've got it."

"I'm impressed!"

There was a click of the case shutting and then the sound of a zipper shutting.

"I'll probably find my glasses in a water bottle tomorrow."

17.27

"It's strange how drowsy sitting in the dark can make you feel." Sam murmured.

"I guess it's an automatic response from our childhoods," Daniel replied, his own voice sounding loud in comparison. He'd been in the middle of trying to remember whether he'd paid his credit card bill yesterday, but now he was reminded of the person next to him. He wondered what she was thinking about.

"I never paid my gas bill before I left for work this morning. I always do that. I hope we don't stay here too long." She said idly, counting how many days she had left to pay it.

Sam had once again voiced thoughts similar to his own and he chuckled. "How do you do that?"

"Do what?"

"I was just thinking about my credit card bill."

Sam laughed quietly. "It's probably the first sign of cave madness."

"The worry of unpaid bills left to collect at home."

"Do you think the gas company will accept 'trapped in a cave on another planet' as an excuse for my late cheque?"

"You could always try – though they might charge you more for being a bit crazy and wasting their time."

Sam smiled and rolled onto her side so she was facing Daniel.

"I always think at times like this it's a good thing I don't have a family to go home to. It would be awful for them to be waiting for me, and for me to be trapped underground in another galaxy."

Daniel felt Sam's breath on his arm and shifted slightly to face her. "Lots of people have families in the SGC."

Sam didn't respond for a few minutes and he wondered if he had upset her. Then she sighed. "Whenever Dad went away, which was a lot, there was always a worry that he wouldn't come back. I'm not sure whether I would want to put someone through that."

"Hmm." Daniel started thinking about his own childhood. He didn't want to raise a family where there was a possibility the children would be orphaned. But he didn't want to quit his job either. And he did want to have a family. A proper family with the house and the mortgage and the 2.4 kids. Sam had been talking about leaving a partner behind though, not children. He wondered if there was anyone in the SG teams who was a mother.

"Sam?"

Sam was just wondering whether she would give up her job for her family or not. It was a hard decision to make and not for the first time she realised how intrusive her job was. But like they said, the military isn't a job: it's a way of life.

"Yeah?"

"Have you ever thought about having children?"

She was surprised by Daniel's question and didn't respond straight away.

"Sorry, I'm being nosy. Ignore that question,"

She smiled at his consideration of her feelings. "It's probably one of those things I'll do in the future, you know? I mean, I'm happy with my life the way it is at the moment." _Aside from the lack of men_ she added silently.

"It's another person to leave every time you go through the gate."

Sam nodded, though Daniel couldn't tell.

Teal'c called in on the radio and Sam replied, before suggesting they switch to four hour check-ins.

"I'll check in at 2200 hours then."

"Understood."

"Do you want something to eat?" Sam asked, shifting into a sitting position and pulling out her torch.

"Good idea."

She switched on the torch so they could light the stove and start cooking. They followed the routine as usual and were soon sitting in silence eating, making occasional comments.

"We ought to switch the stove off."

The cave went silent again without the hiss of the gas.

"How long do you think it will take for General Hammond to organise a team?"

"Couple of hours," Sam replied, finishing her meal. "It'll take longer to move the rubble."

Daniel finished his own meal and started packing the container into a plastic bag kept for that very purpose. "You finished? Sam?"

"Sorry, I keep nodding. This is like an exercise in communication. Here."

She switched on her torch and put the rubbish in the bag, before settling back down and switching off the light.

"Daniel?"

"Yes?"

"Where are we going to go to the toilet?"

Daniel laughed and then thought about it. "Well there's no danger of a lack of privacy."

"True."

"Hang on." A torch flickered on and Daniel looked at Sam wrapped up in her space blanket and smiled. He wandered about the cave looking for a suitable spot and Sam watched his zigzagging light with amusement.

Daniel glanced at Sam as he explored the cave. She was smiling in the brief glimpses he saw of her in his torch light, and he was struck by how much he looked forward to seeing her smiles – to seeing her really. His eyes flickered around the cave nervously at this new thought.

"The collapse in this tunnel is about a metre in, will that do as a bathroom?" He asked, shining the torch into the tunnel and pushing all unnecessary thoughts to the back of his mind. Sam laughed and walked cautiously over to where he was standing.

"That's fine. Now if you don't mind…"

"Of course." Daniel hurriedly went back over to his blanket and sat down. "Am I ok to switch off the torch?"

"Yep."

'Business' done, Sam found her way back to Daniel and her gear with her torch and settled down again.

Daniel lay awake for a while thinking about his life, and the women in his life. It is usually such a depressing thing to do – thinking about acquaintances that had come and gone; friendships that had been lost, relationships that had faded to nothing, but today, in the cave with Sam, it didn't feel that significant. He wondered what it meant. It didn't take being trapped in a cave for Daniel to realise that Sam was the only constant woman in his life these days. Obviously it was important for him to see her smiling – she meant a lot to him. Why was he feeling slightly nervous about that idea then?

Sam lay awake for a while wondering what Daniel was thinking about. She could tell from his breathing that he wasn't sleeping, and longed to know what was bothering him. Then she realised she was behaving like he was her lover, not her friend – friends did not lay in darkness listening to each other's breathing and wondering what they were thinking about. She stopped abruptly and started thinking through her research from the day, but her mind rapidly switched back to its original theme. She bet she was the only woman in Daniel's life that lay next to him wondering what he was thinking about. She smiled as if the thought pleased her.

21:19

"Carter, Daniel, you copy?"

Sam was woken a few hours later to the sound of Colonel O'Neill's voice on the radio. Her brain switched on automatically and she became aware that she had an arm around her.

"Err, Daniel?"

"Hmmm?" Said a sleepy voice behind her.

The arm went tense and moved quickly, followed by an apology.

"Carter here Sir." She replied, reaching for her radio and sitting up.

"You ok? You sound… Strange."

"We're trapped in a cave Colonel." She replied, shaking off the surprise of waking up with Daniel's arm over her.

"I've got SG2 and 10 here. We've just come through the gate. We'll be at the cave in one hour. Do you copy that Teal'c?"  
"I heard you O'Neill."

"Over and Out."

Daniel rubbed his eyes and listened to Jack on the radio. He could feel the chill in the air and shuffled slightly in the blanket. It was nice waking up with someone in his arms - even if it was underground millions of light years from the Milky Way. Life was funny like that sometimes. Jack finished the conversation and the cave went quiet. Daniel wondered what to say.

"It's getting quite cool in here." Sam spoke first.

Daniel nodded.

Sam took his silence to mean he wasn't in the mood to talk and fell quiet herself. She was aware of a change in her perception of Daniel and it was bringing back ideas that she'd rather were not rekindled.

Daniel lay quietly wondering how much rock one person could move before getting exhausted.

21.43

"Can you hear water dripping again?"

Sam was jolted from her thoughts by Daniel's enquiry. She listened and became aware of a slow drip near their vicinity.

"Yeah. It wasn't there earlier."

"No."

"These caves couldn't have been carved by water systems, they aren't very… well, they aren't like any caves I've seen on Earth. Also I haven't seen any stalagmites and stalactites."

"This might not be a limestone cave."

"What?"

"Stalagmites and stalactites form from mineralized solutions… Usually in limestone caves."

Sam grinned at Daniel, though he couldn't see in the dark. She could think she knew most things about Daniel – about all her team mates, but then one of them would say something that surprised her.

She pulled her blanket higher around her head and subconsciously moved closer to Daniel. "I wonder how cold it is outside. I didn't pick up that much of a difference on the thermometer on the way in. A few degrees maybe."

"Did we check how cold it gets at night?"

"I don't think so. We weren't supposed to be here for the night."

21.52

"Do you think we ought to be moving some of the rubble from the cave entrance?"

The cold was starting to get on Daniel's nerves – it was more an irritant than a serious problem so far, but he was thinking that moving rocks would warm them both, as well as making it easier for the SG teams to free them.

"We don't have lights to move by. We can't really use the torches - we may need them later."

"Hmm."

Sam thought about something she'd been considering for a few minutes. "We should've set up the seismometer."

"We wouldn't have been forewarned."

"Perhaps not, but at least we'd have the data to study afterwards."

Daniel laughed. "A true scientist. We're trapped in a cave and all you think of is the data we've missed out on collecting."

Sam laughed at herself. "I bet the geologists complain."

"We weren't doing a seismic survey; we were just looking at this network of caves."

22.07

"Carter, this is O'Neill, come in."

Sam answered.

"We're outside the cave. SG10 are sorting out the camp. SG2 are starting to move the rubble. T had already started."

"I thought he might Sir."

"Get some sleep and we'll radio at…" There was a pause as Jack checked his watch. "0800 hours to check progress."

"Yes Sir."

"Night Carter."

"Night Sir."

"Night Danny."

"Night Jack."

Jack turned back to the two SG teams he'd brought through the gate. "Coburn, get the flood lights up first. I want us working through the night to get them out."

"Yes sir."

Jack went and stood by Teal'c, who was moving some of the shifted rubble. "How do they seem to you T?"

Teal'c stopped working and looked at Jack. "It shall be a long night for them."

"Yup." Jack entered the cave tunnel and began to help moving rubble.


	2. Day 2

**A/N I think this may be the fastest I've updated. Ever…**

Sam and Daniel spent a restless night on the cold and hard surface of the cave, before waking early. Sam lay still for a while feeling slightly disorientated and confused as to what had woken her. Daniel was pressed against her back and she felt him move as he sat up next to her.

"Did you feel that?"

"Aftershock?"

"I don't know."

The ground began to shake and with instinct Daniel curled over Sam to protect her. The movement was less violent than before but still some small pieces of rubble worked themselves loose from the ceiling and clattered noisily to the floor. It stopped in a few seconds and they were relieved to hear no loud cracks in the rocks near them.

"Are you injured?" Daniel asked Sam when he was sure it was over.

Sam's skin tingled as his breath tickled her cheeks and she realised how close his face was to hers. Now there was a distracting thought – slightly uncomfortable, but in a pleasant way. She became aware of a blush rising on her cheeks, but luckily the darkness meant Daniel couldn't see it.

"Sam?" Daniel knew she was alive – he could feel her breath on his lips. This thought flustered him slightly more than expected and he rolled off her swiftly.  
"I'm fine. You?" Sam responded as Daniel moved off her. "Thanks."

"You're welcome," he replied distractedly.

"Colonel O'Neill, do you copy?" Sam asked into the radio.

"Major Coburn here, Major Carter. Colonel O'Neill just cut his head on some falling rock and is being sorted out."

"Is he alright?"

"He'll be fine. He's just annoyed. Are you and Doctor Jackson ok?"

"We're unharmed, Major. Are there any other injuries?"

"No ma'am. Most of us ran straight for the exit when we felt the first tremor."

"Have you made much headway in the tunnel?"

"I'm not sure; I wasn't in the tunnel just now. A couple of metres I think. I'll get Colonel O'Neill to check back with you when Casey's finished with him."

"Thanks Major."

"Over and Out."

Daniel rubbed his arms and shivered slightly. "Jack's been injured and yet we haven't? We've been very lucky."

"So far. Please don't tempt fate." Sam became aware of Daniel's movements in the darkness and she got goosebumps of her own. "There's spare clothing don't forget."  
She heard the sounds of zips going in the darkness and Daniel moving around.

"Do you want some clothes?"

"Yeah please."

Daniel held out a jacket in the darkness and felt Sam's hand brush against his as she felt out for it. He shivered again, but whether it was due to the cold or something else he couldn't be sure. He cleared his throat anxiously, wondering where these little thoughts about Sam kept coming from.

"Are you getting ill?"

"Nope, I'm fine. I need some water though. We haven't drunk since the meal last night. You ought to have some too." He felt for a bottle and took a swig before passing it to Sam, her hand brushing against his again.

"What time is it?" Sam asked the question to distract her mind from the little shiver of electricity that passed through her as Daniel's hand grazed hers. She was beginning to query how long you could stay in pitch black before you went crazy. Surely it was supposed to be longer than an evening?

Daniel's watch lit up momentarily and he replied "Just gone 7."

"Hmmm." Losing a sense was supposed to heighten the others. Maybe that was what was happening – a perfectly scientific explanation, Sam thought.

Daniel remembered that Sam had her own watch on and wondered why she had just asked that.

"Has your watch stopped?"

"What?" As she asked him what he was talking about she realised that she was wearing a watch.

"I mean you're wearing –"

"I think I'm going crazy - which will be a record for cave madness. I lasted all of one night." She switched on the backlight for her own watch and studied the time.

"I'm sure you're not going crazy Sam. We're both just a bit disorientated because of the constant darkness," Daniel replied sensibly.

"I've read articles about being trapped in caves. You have to monitor your climbing partner's behaviour, to check against insanity or something."

"We're unlikely to go insane. The people in caves that go mad most likely do so because of lack of contact with the outside world, which we have. Also they probably don't know if they are going to get rescued, which we do."

"You're right, of course. You usually are." Sam started to feel slightly emotional and was annoyed that all her military training appeared to have been temporarily misplaced. What was bothering her more? The fact that she was beginning to feel out of control or the fact Daniel didn't appear to be?

Daniel frowned at Sam's comment and wondered how to reply. "Are you feeling alright Sam?"

"Uh huh."

"Is that an automatic response or do you genuinely feel ok?" He asked, starting to feel slightly anxious for her.

Sam sighed, wishing he would just leave her be for a while so she could get her mind back on the straight and narrow. "I'm just feeling a bit out of sorts - nothing serious Daniel."

"What sort of out of sorts?"

"Just out of sorts."

Daniel gently felt out next to him to where Sam was sitting, and attempted to put his arm around her without hitting her.

Sam's mind flinched at the straight and narrow and instead suggested kissing Daniel.

"Daniel-" She shuffled away from him and Daniel sat still, confused.

"What's up? I can't help you unless you tell me Sam. It's hard enough to do that with vision…"

"Carter, you awake?" Jack's voice interrupted the tension that was beginning to creep across the cave.

"Daniel there's nothing wrong." She put her hand to her radio. "Yes Sir. How are you feeling?"

Daniel listened to Jack's response and tried to think of a way to get Sam's spirit up. The cold was obviously bothering her - though he was surprised as she had been in far worse before with little obvious effects. Maybe she didn't like the dark.

"Carter, we've done some calculations and it's going to take at least twenty hours to get you two out of there. What are the conditions like?"

"Bit cold Sir. We've got water for a day, maybe two. Food for a week."

"Right, well we won't leave you in there that long. Start rationing if you haven't yet. We'll reassess the situation in four hours."

Sam finished the conversation and slipped into silence again. She decided to sort through her emotions to pass some time. _I wonder if it will take twenty hours _she thought to herself idly. For someone as experienced as Sam in difficult situations it wasn't hard to identify what was bothering her. Clearly the threats of continual darkness, cold and more cave collapse were starting to take their toll. But she knew there was something else as well. Daniel's presence in the cave was making her tense. _And slightly aroused_ the little demon in her head whispered. Why? What had changed? It was Daniel putting his arm around her last night, she decided - and his conversation before that. Intentional or not he'd reminded her of feelings that she'd forgotten for a long while.

She'd been right to forget them though. He'd been married. But now? Well Sha're was dead, and he'd initiated all these things that were now bothering her so much.

Daniel sat in the silence, debating whether to break it or not. If only he could see Sam, he'd at least be able to hazard a guess as to her mood. She'd almost flinched at his touch. Was it surprise? After all she couldn't see his movements in the dark. He was just being friendly. She sounded like she needed some cheering up.

08.01

Sam decided to broach the subject herself. She had to know how he was feeling. Mostly she wanted to know if there was hope. Could Daniel ever go out with her? She had so long ago given up any idea of a relationship with him they'd slipped into an easy friendship – would she destroy that if she started talking about her feelings with him? Perhaps she could claim that she was under undue stress from the situation if he didn't take the chat well.

"Daniel?"

Daniel moved his head in the direction of her voice, glad that she had finally broken the silence. "Yeah?"

"Sorry for being grumpy."

"Its fine, don't worry about it."

"No I was wrong, and you were only being considerate. The thing is…" Sam faded off, wondering what to say.

Daniel waited patiently for Sam to say what was bothering her.

"Daniel, do you like me?"

Daniel was thrown back by her question and Sam kicked herself for sounding like a teenager.

"Of course I like you; you're one of my best friends."

He could be so obtuse some times. "Yeah."

Daniel heard the bitterness in Sam's tone and wondered what she was going on about. "I don't mean to be rude Sam but what are you talking about?"

"It doesn't matter." She said, beginning to regret bringing up the subject at all.

"It obviously does," he stated, starting to get a bit aggravated by Sam's behaviour.

"No, it doesn't," she replied firmly.

"Oh for heavens sake Sam. Contrary to what some women seem to think, men are not mind readers and you are making absolutely no sense."

"I can't believe you just said that."

"What? You're the one talking in code."

"Perhaps, but I wasn't being sexist."

"How did we go from me asking you if you were ok to you accusing me of being sexist?!" Daniel demanded.

"Never mind." Sam said, riled by Daniel's response.

Daniel didn't bother replying but instead wondered what Sam was talking about. Did they just have a fight? Over what? He flexed his fingers in an attempt to warm them up and shook his head slightly. He had been starting to feel tense before, but now he could feel the aggression in the air he felt even more wound up.

Sam scratched her head in a frustrated manner and berated herself for opening her mouth. The last thing they needed in the cave was anger.

They sat in silence for a few hours having nothing to say to each other. Daniel drifted off into a fitful doze and Sam fidgeted quietly as her mind ran with thousands of thoughts.

11.23

Sam got up and stamped up and down a few times to warm and stretch her limbs. Daniel woke up at the noise and moved upright slowly, waiting for his senses to orientate him as much as they could in the given circumstances.

"This is so frustrating!" Sam said angrily, pacing up and down in the darkness. Daniel followed the sounds of her movement from where he sat.

"I wouldn't walk around." He said quietly, making no other attempt to stop Sam from venting her feelings.

Sam ignored him. "We can't even do anything because of this stupid darkness! What the hell are we supposed to do? I'm going to die of boredom before I die of thirst, or hunger!"

There was a loud crack and Sam let out a cry.

"Sam?" Daniel looked over to where the sound came from, before swearing to himself and the darkness.

"Sam?" There was silence and Daniel got up slowly, being careful not to hit anything. He delicately shuffled over to where he presumed Sam was and eventually his fingers met with clothing.

"Sam?" He whispered carefully.

"Leave me alone," she muttered back, tears springing in her eyes.

Sam sat down and leant her back against the wall. Her hand was stinging from where she'd accidentally smacked it against the wall. _It's your own fault for doing expansive gestures in a black cave_ she thought to herself bitterly. She couldn't be sure she hadn't broken it.

She heard Daniel move next to her and felt his presence as he sat nearby.

"Have you hurt yourself?" He asked.

"Just my hand. It doesn't matter."

Daniel's hand gently brushed over her clothing and took her hand.

"This one?"

Sam nodded and sighed.

"Sam?"

"Yeah, that one," she said wearily. "Bet you're wishing you were trapped in here with the Colonel now."

Daniel carefully felt her hand with his fingers and softly replied to her comment. "I can't imagine anyone else faring much better. It's quite a tense situation to be in."

"As tense as shoot-outs?" She asked flinching as Daniel put his hand on a sore spot on her hand.

"It's a different kind of tension Sam. This is more of an undefined threat. You can't expect to be brilliant at everything."

"I can try."

Daniel didn't reply, finding a patch of wet on her skin. "I think your hand is bleeding. Does it feel broken?"

"Uh huh."

Daniel paused before rooting around in his pocket for a flashlight. He switched it on and looked at Sam. She looked miserable and his heart suddenly lurched. He pulled her close. When she didn't resist he gently stroked her uninjured hand and shone the flashlight on the injured one.

"I think its broken Sam" he said.

"Yeah."

"You must've hit it with some force."

Sam lifted her head off Daniel's shoulder and smiled weakly at him. "I was gesturing. I didn't realise I was right next to a wall."

Daniel gently got up and walked over to their packs to fetch a med kit. Finding one he went back to her and sat down again before opening the kit and getting a bandage and some antiseptic out. He carefully applied the antiseptic cream to the cut across Sam's knuckles as she sat in silence – her irregular breathing the only sign she was in any pain. As he worked he noticed how small Sam's hand looked next to his own. The skin was smooth compared to his as well. He wondered how she kept them like that when they spent their days carrying guns and working outdoors. He finished putting cream on and looked at the injury again. Her fingers would need straightening before he bound her hand.

"Sam?"

"I know. Go ahead." She had known the minute he switched on the flashlight that he would need to move her fingers. It wasn't her first fracture and she doubted it would be the last, but it still hurt. She tensed as his fingers brushed over her own and took a firm grip. Without any warning he moved the fingers and she let out a yelp of pain.

"You could've counted me in!" She said indignantly when the pain had subsided slightly.

Daniel offered her a pale smile. "Would it have hurt less?" He started to bandage her hand delicately.

She winced as he worked and he apologised. "Most the things I handle are inanimate."

"It's not your fault. You couldn't be any gentler if you tried." Her heart fluttered at the unseen innuendo and as Daniel finished the bandage their eyes met in the light of the flashlight.

Daniel was suddenly overcome with an urge to kiss Sam and his hands faltered on the finished bandage. The intense look in her eyes drew him closer and as his hands brushed her skin she let out a soft sigh. His eyes lowered to her lips and he moved in to kiss her. Sam shifted forward and their lips met briefly. He paused and looked at her as her eyes opened again. He didn't know what was going on, but it felt right and he realised he didn't care. Sam closed the gap between their lips again and kissed him more passionately. He responded in kind and felt a familiar burning begin to spread across his body. His hands let go of hers and snaked around her back, pulling her on top of his lap.

"Carter, its O'Neill."

Sam had her arms wrapped around Daniel's neck and she had one hand running through his hair as they kissed. She arched her back as he slipped a cold hand inside her t-shirt and began to stroke her lower back.

"Carter, do you copy? Over."

Sam pulled away slightly and Daniel looked at her. "It's Jack," she said unnecessarily.

Daniel nodded; slightly stunned at what was happening.

"We're receiving you sir, over."

Daniel watched her reply as she sat on his lap with his arms wrapped around her. He observed the contrast between Sam's warm body pressed against his on one side and the cold, hard rock wall at his back. The contrast between her behaviour on the radio and the position she was in also struck him and his brain switched back on.

"What's going on Carter?"

"Nothing Sir." She stated.

What is going on? Daniel thought. He tried to remember who had initiated the kiss. Did it matter? Neither had stopped it. Sam finished talking to Jack and looked at Daniel. The intense look was still in her eyes but it was quieter now. Daniel read it as guilt over what had just happened. He furrowed his brow nervously, but he couldn't think of anything to say. If he was honest, he'd rather they just carried on. Sam was still sat on him and he realised his hand was still in her t-shirt. They sat in silence for a few moments, before Sam decided to speak.

"Daniel, I…" she stopped again. She what? Had loved him since the day they met? That was a shock. She had liked him, yes - but love? Realising she was still sat on his lap she made to move, but Daniel's arms tightened around her. She looked at him in surprise and he met her eyes steadily before moving to kiss her again. Sam didn't even consider stopping him and their lips met again as Daniel pulled her in as close as he could. His free hand worked at the zip on her vest to get to the layers underneath. Sam fumbled with the buttons on his jacket and he paused in undoing hers in order to help her undo his. She spread small kisses along his jaw as she opened up his jacket and he let out a low moan.  
"Are you sure you know what you are doing?" he asked hoarsely between kisses. It was a bit too late for his conscience to kick in now anyway, he thought as his hands worked on the buttons of her uniform.

"Do you?" she asked back in between kisses, her un-injured hand roaming under his t-shirt.

"I hope so," he replied, rolling her over so that they were lying down. The flashlight dimmed, then flickered and died.

Sam heard Daniel's ragged breathing above her and pulled his head back to her lips.

The ground below them shook slightly and Daniel paused and listened tensely.

"The dripping has stopped again," he whispered.

Before Sam could reply the cave shook intensely for a few seconds and Daniel flattened himself against her again. There was the sound of a rock fall in one part of the cave but Sam and Daniel were unscathed. The cave went still again.

"We need to check the gear," Sam whispered.

Daniel could hear the fear in her voice. He knew how she felt. He was getting fed up with these aftershocks. They slowly sat up and moved back over to where they thought the gear was. They found it and Sam switched on the remaining flashlight and looked around the cave.

"It's a good thing we haven't eaten yet today because our toilet's just been destroyed." She said to Daniel. He smiled back but she could tell he looked pale.

"Are you ok?"

He nodded and she switched off the light and pulled him close to her before covering them both with the two space blankets.

"…er…Daniel…to me, over?" An unclear message came over the radio, broken up by crackles.

"Carter here Sir. You're breaking up, over."

There was more crackling over the radio and Jack's voice sounded distance. "Are you and Daniel injured?"

Sam realised she hadn't reported in her fractured hand yet. "I have a fractured hand sir. But apart from that we're still alive."

"…ood to hear…" came the reply.

"Sir, we're getting pretty tense and cold in here."  
Daniel was startled at Sam's open admission of fear to Jack and he wrapped his arm protectively around her.

There was silence on the radio for a few seconds. "We'll get you out Carter. Then you can do a nice project on the rocks. And Danny can do his language stuff."

"Roger that sir. Over and out."

Sam and Daniel sat in silence for a few minutes.

"Sam, I just want you to know that what almost just happened – I wouldn't have regretted it."

"I wouldn't have either."

Daniel nodded and they fell silent again.

Jack finished the conversation and looked at Teal'c, who was stood by the cave entrance having listened over the radio. He gestured for him to come over.

"How far do you think we've got left to go?"

"We cannot work any quicker O'Neill. They will have to spend another night in the cave by my calculations."

Jack sighed. "They don't sound too great."

"They have not yet been trapped for 24 hours."

Jack nodded. "But it's cold and damp down there." Jack thought for a few minutes. "It'd be easier if we could just blow our way through."

Teal'c raised his eyebrows. "That would most likely cause more damage, and risk the lives of Major Carter and Daniel Jackson."

"I know." He rubbed his forehead where a headache was forming.

13.00

Sam broke the silence by chuckling suddenly and Daniel was jolted out of his own thoughts.

"What's funny?"

"Nothing."

"Don't do that again."

"Well, I was just thinking. The earth literally did move beneath my feet when you kissed me."

Daniel laughed and Sam chuckled again.

Daniel's mind wandered back over the morning. He remembered the row they'd had earlier and he suddenly realised what Sam had been talking about. Had she been trying to gauge his interest in her? Why? It seemed such a random thing to do. He wondered what had provoked her. And now they had kissed. They had nearly done more. He hadn't been lying earlier – he wouldn't have regretted it. Daniel felt confused and his thoughts turned to what would happen when they left the cave. It was probably a good thing they had been interrupted. In daylight this all might look very different.

Sam sighed next to him and he realised she was asleep, curled up against him. He smiled subconsciously, glad that she felt safe in his arms. It was probably best that she didn't know how much he enjoyed protecting her like this. She would probably accuse him of being sexist again.

15.03

"Colonel O'Neill, this is Stargate Command, do you copy? Over." Sergeant Harriman's voice came over the radio in the cave and Daniel carefully took the radio off Sam and turned the volume down so as not to wake her.

Outside, Jack confirmed that he was receiving.

"Can we have an update of your progress, over."

"We're not through yet. We're looking at another night here. Can we have some scientists working on the threat from the aftershocks please?"

"Yes sir. I'll speak to the geologists and get back to you."

"Roger that. Can you get Doctor Frasier on the radio as well?"

"Roger that. We'll radio back in 10 minutes. Over and Out."

Jack paused a second before calling Sam. "Carter did you copy that?"

"Hi Jack, its Daniel," Daniel whispered down the radio.

"Hey Danny, how you doing? Where's Carter?"

"I'm fine. Sam's asleep."

"Ah. What's it like in the cave?"

"Not very stable. Part of the roof collapsed in the last aftershock."

"Have you eaten?"

"No, not yet."

"Well eat something warm – is the cold getting to you yet?"

"It's nothing serious. Enough to be annoying."

"What about the flashlights?"

"One has died. The other is fine. We aren't really using them."

"I'll call you in four hours unless something comes up. There's going to be some chatter on the radio. Over and out."  
Sam's arm tightened across Daniel's chest and she stirred slightly. "What did Jack say?"

"Nothing really. Told us to eat and keep warm."

"I'm quite hungry actually, what time is it?"

"Ten past three. I'll cook something."

Daniel moved slightly and Sam sat up, suddenly feeling faint.

"Are you ok?" Daniel asked as Sam paused from moving off him.

"Just went a bit dizzy. It's probably because we haven't eaten."

Daniel got up and lit the stove before turning to Sam. "How's your hand?" The stove gave off very little light but it was enough for them to see each other.

"It just aches."

Daniel spread out a space blanket on the floor next to the stove and gestured for Sam to come and sit. "The last thing we want is you getting hypothermia."

"Daniel, I'm fine. Honest."

"You probably are. But there's no need to tempt fate." He sat down next to her and she wrapped the second blanket around the both of them.

"Can I look at your hand?"

Sam held her hand out to him and he gently took it. "Can you feel this?" He asked, pinching her fingers. Sam shook her head. Her fingers felt icy in his and he wondered if it was due to the cold or the fracture.

"Keep it wrapped up. Janet will be on the radio in a minute and we can ask her what to do. It's a good thing you don't write with that hand!"

Sam smiled. "Thanks Daniel. That's the kind of comment I would expect Colonel O'Neill to make."

Daniel put some food on the stove as the radio crackled into life again.

"Colonel O'Neill. This is General Hammond. Do you copy, over."

"Hello Sir."

"Hello Colonel. We've got Doctor Frasier here. Is there a problem?"

"I hope not sir. I just wanted to know how long Carter and Daniel could stay in the cave."

Daniel laughed slightly. "Jack seems to want to keep us in here as long as possible."

Janet's voice came over the radio. "Are they on the radio Colonel?"

Daniel picked up the radio. "We're here Janet."

"Hiya Daniel. Could you give me a status update?"

"Sam has a fracture in her hand and her fingers have gone numb. Other than that neither of us are displaying signs of hypothermia yet. Are we?" he asked off radio to Sam.

She smiled. "No you're not."

"Good."

"I can't tell you anything you don't already now I'm afraid. Keep warm and dry. Cover the injured hand and try not to use it any more than is absolutely necessary."

"Thanks Janet."  
Jack finished the radio chatter.

At the SGC Janet turned to General Hammond. "They sound ok at the moment sir, but obviously I wouldn't advise leaving them down there longer than necessary."

"And Major Carter's hand?"

"I've got no way of knowing if it's due to the cold or the fracture."

General Hammond nodded. "Be ready to treat them as soon as they get back."

"Yes sir."

General Hammond sighed and stared at the stargate. It was always stressful when teams went through the gate. But when they got stuck on the other side… He hoped they were freed soon. It would be a shame for them to die in a cave and not in a battle to save Earth.

15.53

"We should play a game to pass the time." Sam said after they had finished eating.

"What do you want to play?"

"I don't know. I spy?" Sam burst into giggles at her own joke, as did Daniel.

"I spy with my little eye, something beginning with D…"

Sam laughed again. "Is it darkness by any chance?"

"Damn you're good."


	3. Day 3 Part 1

**A/N An anonymous reviewer left me the message: "Is if this turns S/D then say so. Don't want to waste my time for that crappy pairing..."**

**Errr, yes it is going to turn Sam/Daniel... hence why the main characters are listed as Sam and Daniel… and the genre is romance… :-S For everyone else who actually wants to read this, here's day 3 Part 1.**

01.34

Daniel shifted in his sleep, pulling the blanket tighter around him and Sam, who was fast asleep in his arms. There was a crack as something collapsed deep in the cave walls and he stirred sleepily, wondering if he had dreamed it. He listened lazily for any sounds around him and noticed Sam had woken up.

"Can you hear running water?" She asked, her voice still groggy with sleep.

There was a closer noise in the rocks and Sam woke up properly.

"Another aftershock?"

"Why isn't the ground moving?" Daniel asked back, fumbling for a flashlight.

There was a grinding sound in a wall very nearby and Sam and Daniel scrambled into an upright position as Daniel switched on the light. They could see nothing in the wall opposite them. A sweep of the cave revealed that nothing had changed.

"God I'm getting fed up of this," Sam sighed. "My nerves are more frayed than when we are getting tortured."

There was a large snapping sound and Daniel brought the flashlight on to the wall opposite them again as it began to splinter down the middle. Water started pouring in from the split, increasing in speed as the crack progressed down the wall.

"Shit." Sam said. There was no other word for it.

Daniel grabbed the radio at his feet.

"Jack, it's Daniel, can you hear me?"

Jack stirred in his tent as he heard his name being called over the radio. He'd asked no-one to bother him for 4 hours while he got some sleep but clearly they had ignored the command.

"What is it?" he mumbled, grasping blindly at the radio. He brain clicked into gear as he recognised Daniel's agitated voice over the radio.

"Jack, the cave is flooding with water, I repeat; the cave is flooding with water."

Jack swore and scrambled out of the tent, running into Teal'c who'd heard the message over the radio. He was swiftly joined by Coburn, who'd also overheard.

"How long till it fills completely Daniel?"

Daniel looked at Sam as she did some rough calculations in her head. The water was gushing in now and they were already standing in a few centimetres of it. Sam looked at Daniel. "About 10 minutes if the water doesn't escape anywhere."

"Sam says 10 minutes if the water doesn't escape somewhere," Daniel repeated over the radio. "Do you think it will?" He asked her.

"The rate its going, it won't matter if a bit escapes through the rubble blocking us in."

"Ah. That's what I was thinking."

Sam moved over to the gear and started picking it up. "Best move it to the top of the cave just in case the water does escape. We won't want wet things."

Daniel nodded and picked up the remaining pack before wedging them both on to the top of a rubble pile in the cave.

Jack looked at Teal'c and Coburn. "Any ideas?"

"Blow it?"

Jack shook his head at Coburn's suggestion, then paused. "Actually, that could work now couldn't it? I mean, they're at risk anyway."

"Do you wish to put them in any more danger O'Neill?" Teal'c asked.

"Right. That can be plan B. What explosives do we have with us?"

"C4. Couple of dynamite sticks."

"And how many meters of rubble?"

"Well there was about 7m of tunnel left."

"Right." Jack fell into silence as he thought.

"Don't we need to move the men out the tunnel Sir? They can't do anything right now and they may be at risk."

Jack nodded at Coburn's suggestion. "And wake up SG2." Coburn went off to the cave entrance and Jack looked at Teal'c. "Did you feel an aftershock?"

"I did not." Teal'c paused. "Is it not possible the water built up within the rocks?"

Jack nodded.

Sam gasped as the cold water went over the edges of her boots. "Shame there wasn't a thermal spring around here somewhere," she said, removing her vest so as to take off her jacket.

"What are you doing?"

"Taking off some layers so I don't sink. You should do the same."

Daniel nodded and put the flashlight between his teeth as he removed his own jacket. Sam pulled her vest back on and Daniel handed her the radio. She attached the radio and spoke into it. "Sir, you ought to move any men out of the tunnel. The rest of the cave structure may also be weakened."

"Already done Carter. We're just having a quick brain-storming session to get you out. How high is it?"

"Knee level sir."

Jack looked around at the men standing in front of him, most of SG2 quite dishevelled from being woken up. "Ok. C4 is the only plan we've got. We've got about 7 minutes. Anyone attempted to blow up a blocked tunnel before?"

He looked around the floodlit area as the men shook their heads. "Right. Well. I'm guessing we can't use too much C4. The caves are presumably very weak and we don't want the whole thing collapsing. Any thoughts?"

Major Griff cleared his throat. "Excuse Sir, I was just thinking. If we blow up a few areas near the bottom of the rubble the water pressure might do the rest for us."

"Right. How much?"

"Enough to make a big enough impact in 7m of rubble."

"Come with me into the tunnel and show me where you want it. SG2, get the C4 and join us in there. SG10 get gear away from the cave entrance just in case."

Jack and Griff ran over to the cave and into the tunnel. When they reached the wall of rubble Griff pointed out the best locations for the C4.

"But you've never done this before?"

"No sir. And I can't stress enough how dangerous this probably will be for Major Carter and Doctor Jackson."

"More dangerous than drowning?"

Major Griff conceded and SG2 turned up with the C4.

"Set it up," Jack commanded, before turning to his radio. "Carter, you there?"

"Yes Sir," Carter replied, standing up to her waist in water. It was noisy in the cave now with rushing water and cracks as other parts of the wall fractured and split under the pressure.

"We're going to blow up the entrance to the cave."

"Sorry, sir I didn't hear that." Sam shouted down the radio.

"It sounded like he said he was going to blow up the entrance to the cave," Daniel said, looking at Sam incredulously. The light swung around crazily as he struggled to stay upright in the rush of incoming water.

"I said we are going to blow up the cave with C4." Jack repeated clearly.

"He did." Sam replied, shocked. "I don't think that's a good idea sir."

The water reached her chest and she tried to block the cold out of her mind.

"We don't have a better idea Carter. And Major Griff seems to know what he's doing."

"You'll have to speed it up sir, we've got about 3 minutes."

"Roger that. Keep away from the cave entrance."

Jack turned to SG2. "How's it coming?"

Coburn nodded to him. "Couple more minutes and it'll all be set up."

"Well you heard Carter - hurry it up."

Daniel started treading water, joining Sam who already had been for the past minute. "Well it's a twist – the one thing we weren't expecting has happened." Daniel said. It was quieter in the cave now that the majority of the wall split was underwater.

"I'm glad fate has a sense of irony," Sam remarked. The cave ceiling was looking awfully close and her injured hand was throbbing, though whether it was from the swimming movements or the cold she couldn't tell – nor did she really care right now.

Coburn turned to Jack. "It's ready sir."

"Ok everyone out the cave. I'm setting up a 10 second detonation on it."

Coburn nodded and lead his men out the cave. Jack turned to the detonator and set the countdown on it, before glancing at his watch. He hit the start button and ran like hell out of the cave tunnel.

The last pocket of air disappeared in the cave and Sam and Daniel disappeared underwater. The eerie sound of water filled their ears and the cold swept over them. Sam switched on her watch and wondered if Jack was going to make it. The flashlight flickered uncertainly before switching off; leaving her and Daniel plunged in darkness.

Jack watched the tunnel entrance and glanced at his watch. Right on time there was a blast and dust rushed out of the opening.

"Shouldn't we be seeing water?"

Major Griff stood up from where they were all hiding behind a ditch. "There's a possibility it didn't work…" He said uncertainly.

Suddenly there was a loud bang and Griff threw himself back down to the ground as part of the tunnel collapsed. Rock and muddy water rushed out of the entrance, scattering debris everywhere.

Jack stood up and looked over the area in front of them – still lit by the floodlights. "Anyone see any sign of them? They may have come out with the water."

Jack and Teal'c ran over to the tunnel entrance with a lamp as the rest of the men started checking the area.

"That's one hell of a hole," Jack said, looking at patch of excavated rock. He climbed through the new entrance and worked his way into the cave.

Daniel coughed and spluttered, unsure if he had been unconscious or whether it had just been the lack of light. Shadows danced around the wall and he saw Jack kneel beside him.

"You ok Danny?"

"Good to see you. Excellent timing. Where's Sam?"  
"Over here Colonel O'Neill."

Jack turned around and carried the lamp over to where Major Carter lay.

Daniel's heart went into his mouth when he saw that she was unconscious and he scrambled to his feet, ignoring the rush of blood to his head.

"Sam?"

Jack got to her side and checked her airways. "Shit, she's not breathing."

Daniel knelt down next to him and checked her pulse. "She's still got a pulse." His mouth plunged down on hers as an automatic response to the information but there was no passion in this kiss; just oxygen. He pulled up and checked for signs of breathing again. "Still nothing." He gave her mouth to mouth again and was rewarded with a light splutter.

"Roll her on her side," Jack ordered as she started to cough up the water she'd inhaled.

Sam coughed and retched her way back into consciousness and became aware of talking around her. She opened her eyes blearily and was greeted with the sight of a wet Daniel, who helped her into sitting position and held her there.

"How you feeling?" Jack asked; a slightly nervous sound in his voice.

She looked at Jack. "Like I just almost drowned sir."

"Don't ever do that again Carter, we all almost had heart attacks."

"I don't plan to sir." She looked at Daniel, who was still holding her upright. "How are you?" She asked softly.

"I'm ok." He looked very pale by the torch light and was shivering slightly. She threw her arms around him and pulled him into a tight hug and he reciprocated. "Jack's right Sam. Don't ever do that again."

"I won't." Sam replied almost tearfully.

Jack and Teal'c glanced at each other and Jack shrugged.

"Can we continue this outside you two, only some of us were rudely awakened to sort this out."

Sam laughed but she knew behind the sarcasm and jokes Jack had been worried as well. She could see how pale and tired he looked.

Teal'c leant forward and offered a hand to both her and Daniel to get them to their feet. Sam stood up and wobbled as the blood rushed to her head. Teal'c gently guided her out of the hole they had blasted into the tunnel, with Jack leading Daniel behind them. They left the entrance to the cave and Sam closed her eyes to the brightness of the flood lights. It actually hurt to look and behind her she heard Daniel wince. "Jeez Jack, do you want to be visible from space?"

Jack looked at Daniel and Sam wincing at the lights and gestured for Coburn to turn a couple off. "They're not that bright Daniel. It's probably because you've been in a cave for hours."

Coburn dimmed a few floodlights as SG2 and SG10 welcomed Daniel and Sam back.

"Right. Plan everyone: We are all going back to bed. Teal'c and I will keep first watch. I want everyone up at 08.00hrs to start packing up the gear. Understood?" Jack interrupted the talking and looked around at all the weary faces. Everyone voiced their assent and he turned to Sam and Daniel. "I want you two to both drink some hot drinks, then sleep. We've still got an hour walk back to the gate tomorrow. Do you think you'll be up for it?"

Sam nodded, as did Daniel. "Medical treatment will have to wait until you get back to the SGC. Unless you want to experience Casey's definition of field first aid. Take that tent over there. I'll go get you some dry gear."

Sam and Daniel headed slowly over to the tent Jack had gestured at and started to strip off their wet clothes. Jack turned up at the door to the tent and handed them some dry BDUs. "We've just put some drinks on the stove; they'll be ready in a few minutes."

"Thank sir."

"Thanks Jack."

Jack hesitated. "I'm glad you're both ok. Sleep well. I'll have to get each watch to check on you but we'll try not to wake you."

Sam climbed into a sleeping bag, exhausted beyond all belief and still shivering. Daniel did the same. He wanted to tell Sam something but he was feeling so groggy he couldn't actually make the effort to do so.

Major Coburn unzipped the tent door and passed in two cups of steaming drink. "Colonel O'Neill says he wants you to drink these before you sleep."

Both muttered their thanks and Coburn zipped up the tent door and left them in peace. "What is it?" Sam asked Daniel, peering into her own mug blearily.

"Smells sugary." Daniel replied, peering into his own.

Sam took a sip. "I think it's just hot chocolate."

"Sam?"

"Hmmm?"

"You know what happened in the cave?"

"Hmmm?"

"Can it happen again outside the cave?"

Sam looked at Daniel as he studied her intently. "When I saw you lying there unconscious… it was awful. And I realised how much I like you. I mean, really like you. How much I love you even."

Sam smiled at him and looked at her broken hand. It was still in its damp bandage but no-one had thought to change it. There was a small stain of red from the cut underneath.

"That's the most romantic thing I've ever heard."

"Really? I think I'm doing quite well considering how tired I am."

Sam drank her drink quickly and settled down in her sleeping bag. "I love you too Daniel. I always have."

"Oh." Daniel drank his own drink and lay down next to her after switching off the little lamp in the tent. "Good."

He wrapped his arm around her and they both fell asleep.

03.04

Jack checked in on Sam and Daniel at the end of his watch to make sure they were both ok. He smiled as he noticed Daniel's arm laid protectively over Sam. Then he sighed and headed over his own tent, bones aching and glad that Sam and Daniel were free.

**A/N2 It sounds like the end, but sadly I have more to write!**


	4. Day 3 Part 2

**A/N Thanks to everyone who has been reviewing (and saying that they like Sam/Daniel), especially to bluedragon1836 who's review made me laugh (don't know if that was your intention!). So Day 3 part 2:**

* * *

08.25

"Major Carter. Daniel Jackson."

Sam and Daniel stirred at the sounds of Teal'c's voice.

"What is it?" Daniel asked sleepily as Sam sat up.

"The camp is almost packed and O'Neill wished me to wake you. Are you both better?"

"I'm alright," Sam replied, climbing out of her sleeping bag stiffly. Daniel did the same and was surprised to find that many of his muscles ached.

Teal'c watched them for a few seconds. "I'm glad you are both safe." He smiled at them both. "Major Coburn is making breakfast for us all." Teal'c left the tent opening and Sam folded up her sleeping bag as Daniel took down the lamp from its hook.

"I wonder if any of our gear was retrieved from the cave." He said as he started packing away gear in the rucksacks at the end of the tent.

It only took 10 minutes to pack away the inside of the tent – years of practise had made it second nature, and Sam and Daniel staggered outside – squinting at the bright sunlight. The air was already heating up as two stars burned brightly in the sky. They gathered up the now dry clothes they had been wearing the day before and sat down to lace up their boots. Major Griff stopped loading up the second MALP and came over to them.

"Morning Major, Doctor." He nodded to them both. "I took the liberty of gathering together your gear from the cave. I'm afraid all of it is wet – I don't know how much damage there is."

Sam finished struggling to lace up her boots with her injured hand and stood up. "Thank you" she replied sincerely.

Major Griff gestured to the packs next to the MALP that he had been loading. "It's all there. Major Coburn will soon have breakfast ready." He nodded to them both again and headed back over to the MALP.

"I guess that answers my question then," Daniel remarked, standing up. "I hope my glasses are in there."

Sam looked at him and smiled. "I'd completely forgotten. Are you ok without them?"

"I'll be fine. Let's get this tent down then go look."

09.20

Breakfast eaten, Daniel's glasses found in the water saturated gear and everything packed, SG1, 2 and 10 set off back to the gate.

"So, did you find out anything useful?" Jack asked, falling into step beside Sam.

"Not really. I've not checked what data we have left either." Sam replied, pulled from her reverie. She'd just remembered what Daniel had said to her last night.

"What's funny?"

"Sir?"

"You're smiling," Jack remarked curiously.

Sam grinned. "Just glad to be out sir."

Daniel glanced behind him at Sam and Jack talking and smiled a smile of his own. Next to him Major Griff was remote controlling the MALP with one hand while holding his weapon with the other.

"Expecting trouble Major?" Daniel queried, gesturing to the rifle.

"Just being careful. I've been offworld enough times to know that you always keep a finger near the trigger. What happened to yours? We couldn't find them."

"They got squashed when the cave roof collapsed."

"Nice."

Static came over the radios as General Hammond spoke. "Colonel O'Neill, this is General Hammond, do you read me, over?"

"Read you loud and clear sir, over."

"We have a report from the scientists about seismic activity Colonel; can you report your status?"

Jack looked at Sam, who was still smiling to herself. "I'm walking next to Major Carter sir. She and Daniel are both out of the cave and we're heading back to the gate. Eta 40 minutes."

"That's good to hear Colonel. See you in 40 minutes. Over and out."

Sergeant Harriman disengaged the wormhole and looked at General Hammond. The general smiled. "Fetch me when they start dialling in."

10.07

"Incoming wormhole… Receiving SG2s IDC." Walter Harriman's voice rang out across the PA system as General Hammond and Doctor Frasier stood behind him. They watched the three SG teams coming through the event horizon. They all looked weary and scruffy, but alive. Janet smiled, relieved, and headed down the stairs to meet them. Daniel and Sam stood to one side of the gate ramp as the others handed in their weapons.

"Major, Daniel." They looked up as Janet entered the gate room. "Good to see you both again." She smiled warmly at them and they grinned back.

"It's good to see you again too." Sam replied.

"Any serious problems I need to know about before we check you both out?"

"Broken hand?" Sam offered, showing Janet her bandaged hand, now looking quite grubby.

Janet nodded. "Infirmary." She looked at the other SG teams. "You all need to head down there for post-op check ups as well."

Jack turned around to face Janet and scowled.

"Especially you Colonel, where did you get that cut?" Janet asked, looking at the cut Casey had patched up earlier.

"Alright, I'm coming." He replied grudgingly.

They all followed the petite doctor down the hallways to the infirmary.

"Just there, I'll be right over," Janet said to Sam and Daniel, gesturing to a gurney at the back of the room. They followed her instructions and sat down, watching her talk to the nurses and gesture at various team members.

Sam sat quietly, letting her shoulders droop as the tension started to drain out of them. It was fair to say that she was exhausted in mind and body. Her hand was throbbing with a dull ache, while the rest of her was just glad to be back home.

Daniel sat quietly beside Sam, their thighs almost touching. His neck was tight and his legs hadn't really lost their stiffness from when he woke up. He touched Sam's leg and she looked at him. "You good?"

"Just tired. You?"

"Same." He remembered back to the conversation they had just before the first earthquake. "We've had this conversation before."

Sam nodded and smiled. "I hope the fossils survived."

Daniel looked over to the pile of gear just inside the infirmary doors. "It'll be fun unpacking them later," he remarked idly.

Janet walked over to them. "Who wants to go first?" She looked at them both.

Daniel gestured for Sam to go first and got up slowly, moving away from the gurney and drawing the curtain behind him. He sat down heavily on a free chair as Jack appeared with a new plaster on his head.

"How you feeling?" He asked as Jack pulled up a seat next to him.

"I'm great, and you?" Jack asked, scrutinising Daniel with his brown eyes. "I've gotta be honest Danny boy: you look like hell."

Daniel smirked. "Thanks Jack, you really know how to make people feel good."

Jack grinned in response, then looked serious. "Seriously though, how are you?"

"I'm fine. Just tired. Really tired."

"And quite dirty," Jack added. He paused for a few seconds. "Well, we've got a couple of days off. General Hammond's scheduled the debrief for 1100hrs tomorrow but apart from that we're free."

"Right."

"I'd best go write my mission report. Or at least start it… or pretend to…." Jack got up and left the infirmary and Daniel leant back on his chair, shutting his eyes for a few minutes.

On the other side of the curtain Janet finished examining Sam. "Well your heart rate's a little high but that's to be expected. Other than that you seem fine. The Colonel said you were unconscious when they found you?"

Sam nodded. "Well, I'd like to keep you in overnight, but-" She held her hand up to stop Sam from arguing. "But I know you won't want to and I don't think you're in any risk. It's just a precaution."

"I'd rather just go home and sleep in my own bed."

"Thought so. Right, let's have a look at this hand. You think there are some fractured bones? How did you do it?" Janet asked, starting to slowly un-wrap the bandage.

Sam looked sheepish. "I hit a wall. It's got a cut too," she added, in case Janet hadn't noticed the blood on the bandage.

"Intentionally or accidentally?"

The bandage peeled away and Sam winced as the gauze unstuck from the ripped skin. Janet apologised for the pain.

"It was my own fault. I was complaining about the cave, and pacing-"

"In darkness?" Janet interrupted.

"In darkness, and I swung my hands out and one of them made contact."

Janet delicately cleaned the wound. "It must've been quite stressful in the cave."

Sam saw Janet watching her closely out of the corner of her eyes. "There's no need to psych test me Janet, I'm fine. Actually, I was rubbish in the cave, but Daniel was great." Sam smiled at the memory.

"Really?"

"Yeah. Can you believe that I have all this training and all I could think was 'I'm bored and I haven't paid my bills'." _Actually that's not all I thought of_ she added silently. She flinched as Janet put antiseptic on the cut.

"Right, I need an x-ray so I'll get that done and you can go shower. When you're cleaned up come back and we'll see what damage has actually been done."

"Great."

Janet swept back the curtain and looked at Daniel sleeping in the chair. She beckoned a nurse over and whispered what she wanted doing. Sam followed the nurse away and Janet turned to Daniel.

"Daniel?" She nudged him gently and he started.

"God, sorry Janet," he said, rubbing his eyes furiously. He followed her behind the curtain and settled down on the gurney.

"Tired?" She asked kindly, pulling on a clean pair of gloves.

"Like you wouldn't believe."

"Any visible signs of injury etc., that you want checking out?" She enquired, shining a penlight in his eyes.

"Nope."

"Good." Janet fell silent for a few minutes and started the check up, recording notes on her clipboard.

"Sam says you were great in the cave?" She enquired as she took his temperature.

Daniel's first thought was of the kiss they'd shared and he blushed, feeling himself become uncomfortably warm. "Erm, yeah. I've been on quite a few digs in situations like that."

Janet watched the colour rise in his cheeks and wondered what had embarrassed him. "Was Sam alright in the cave?"

"She was great too," he remarked, blushing again as he realised what he'd said. "I mean, she was quite tense, but who wouldn't be?"

Janet finished the rest of the check up in silence, wondering what was up with Daniel.

"Well, medically there's nothing wrong with you," she said finally, emphasising the word. "But if you need to talk you know where I am."

Daniel stood up and started buttoning up his shirt as Janet swung back the curtain. "Get a good night's rest," she commanded.

Sam entered the infirmary, looking clean and rosy-cheeked from what was presumably a very hot shower. Her eyes focused behind Janet to where Daniel was doing up the last few buttons on his shirt. Their eyes met and she smiled at him. He flashed a cheeky smile back and smoothed down his shirt.

"I'm off to shower then," he announced to no-one in particular. "See you in a while." He locked eyes with Sam and smiled again, before heading out the door.

Janet watched Daniel leave the infirmary and Sam sit down on the gurney again. Had she just seen a look of affection on Samantha Carter's face? When she looked at Daniel?! Surely not. She looked at the x-rays the nurse had handed her.

"You've fractured two metacarpals." Janet showed her on the x-ray. "But they look like clean breaks - you won't need surgery. I'll have to splint the hand for the next 3 or 4 weeks." Janet called a nurse over and set up equipment to plaster Sam's hand. "I'll give you something for the pain too."

"So," she said a few minutes later when she'd started on Sam's hand. She checked the rest of the infirmary was empty and wondered how to find out if her suspicions were right.

Sam was looking at her inquiringly and she hurriedly thought of something to say. "Daniel says you were great in the cave as well."

Sam blushed and Janet grinned to herself. "Did something happen in the cave between you and Daniel?" Well that got Sam's attention, Janet noted as she quietly continued plastering Sam's arm.

Sam looked closely at Janet. "Why, what did he say?"

Janet looked up from her work and grinned evilly. "What do you want him to have said?"

Sam raised her eyebrows in an amused manner.

"I knew it!" Janet whispered, glancing around the infirmary again. "What happened?"

Sam shifted uncomfortably under the Doctor's stare.

"You didn't…?" Janet started incredulously.

"No we didn't! We were on a mission!" _Well, it's half true,_ Sam thought to herself - we only almost did.

"So you wanted to?!"

Sam rolled her eyes and looked at Janet. "I'm sure you only became a doctor so you can get gossip out of people when they're at their most vulnerable."

Janet's eyes glinted cheerfully. "I'd have to be a moron to not notice the two of you."

"What do you mean?"

"The look you gave each other when he left just now. So, what's happened?"

"Daniel admitted he has feelings for me." Sam said shyly. "And I, well you know about my feelings for him. So I told him too."

"He loves you?"

"Yep." Sam grinned.

"I knew it." Janet said gleefully to herself. "Anything else?"

"We kissed."

"And…?"

"And the Earth moved. Literally." Sam chuckled at her joke again.

Janet watched her friend. "I'm really happy for you Sam." She paused for a few moments. "Don't forget about the frat regs though."

Sam cleared her throat. "Yeah, I know. It's difficult isn't it? Because if I tell General Hammond and then nothing really happens between us it's a waste of time isn't it? Telling the General is like putting an official stamp on it - whatever 'it' is."

"Nonsense. Daniel's told you he loves you and you've never actually been on a date with him. It couldn't get any easier!"


	5. Day 3 Part 3

**A/N Sorry for the brief delay in updating. In all honesty I didn't realise I hadn't updated in a couple of weeks. I'd love to say I have been busy with exams, but some of you have been reading my work since I first started posting, and you'd know that is a downright lie! There's a reason I write more around the exam period... One more chapter to go I think. Who knows? Mwahahahaha.**

11.23

General Hammond looked up as someone knocked on his door. "Come in." He was surprised to see Major Carter enter the office and shut the door quietly behind her. "Major? I thought you'd be in the infirmary - or at home."

"I'm going home in a minute sir; I just wanted to talk to you about something."

General Hammond gestured for her to take a seat. "How's the hand?" He asked, gesturing to the fresh white plaster on Sam's arm.

"Fractured in two places sir."

The general nodded sympathetically. "So, what's bothering you Major?"

Sam paused. "I just wanted to know what the frat rules are for military and non- military members of SG teams."

If General Hammond hadn't expected that question he hid it well. "Would this have anything to do with a certain archaeologist?"

"Yes sir."

The general smiled at her and she looked at him, surprised and not attempting to hide it. "Your father accidentally let slip once that he wouldn't mind having Daniel for a son-in-law."

"Oh." Sam turned this fact over in her mind. "Nothing's happened yet Sir," she said hastily, in case the general thought something had been going on since her father had last been on Earth, which was weeks ago at least.

General Hammond nodded. "How long have you loved him?"

Sam looked shocked at his question and he explained himself. "Well I'm presuming as far as frat rules go, you've had a bias towards him for quite a while now and it hasn't affected you in the battlefield. So as long as we keep an eye on the situation I don't see any problem with it."

"Really sir?"

"If you decide to get married or something I may have to rethink my position, but for now you have my blessing - and your father's." He added.

Sam smiled gratefully. "Thank you sir."

"You're welcome major. Now go home and get some sleep. The debriefing is scheduled for 1100hrs tomorrow."

Sam nodded and saluted the General before leaving his office grinning to herself.

General Hammond chuckled to himself and leant back in his chair. In his mind he saw Sam as she had been when much younger. Time moved so fast sometimes.

Sam entered the elevator to head up to ground level and hummed to herself as the doors started to slide shut. At the last second a hand appeared and they reopened.

"Carter!"

"Sir?" She looked at Jack as he jumped into the elevator and pressed the ground floor button.

"I hope you weren't thinking of driving home with a broken hand."

"Actually I was sir."

"Not to mention exhaustion and whatever else the Doc diagnosed you with." He looked at her. "I'll give you a lift. I'm heading home anyway for some much needed sleep."

"I'm fine sir, seriously. And my bike's here anyway."

He looked appalled at her suggestion. "Well you've just sealed it. There is no way I'm letting you ride a bike home with one hand in plaster."

Sam studied him closely. "Are you feeling ok sir?" She scrutinised him suspiciously.

"Carter!" He replied in mock outrage as the lift doors slide open silently. "Can a CO not show his 2IC some kindness once in a while? You did almost die this morning. It's making me more compassionate than usual."

Sam smiled at him. "We almost die on a regular basis sir. It's an occupational hazard."

"Shut up and get in the car."

Sam shrugged and climbed into the passenger seat, doing up her seatbelt as she did so. Jack climbed in beside her and they were soon out of the mountain and on their way back to her house.

"Of course the only reason I'm driving you home really is so that I can make sure you actually get there and sleep, and don't start unpacking your gear from the mission instead." Jack looked at her sideways as he drove along. "I'd hate for the debriefing to go on any longer than necessary tomorrow – I'm looking forward to a couple of days off."

Sam laughed. "There's no danger of that, I feel dead on my feet. I can't wait to sleep somewhere comfy where there isn't imminent danger of falling rocks."

Jack nodded and thought seriously, before grinning again. "Now the only team member you've not been trapped in a cave with is Teal'c. When are you planning to do that?"

Sam laughed again; glad she'd accepted a ride back with the Colonel. Though tired, she was feeling quite happy, and chatting to Jack was just what she needed.

"Of course the experience of being trapped in a cave with me was probably infinitely better than being trapped in a cave with Daniel. I bet he talked about science. Actually I bet you did too. God I can just imagine it." Jack grimaced. "So how do you rate us both on the cave companion scale?" He asked jokily as he pulled up outside her house.

"I'll have to think about it Sir," she replied, undoing her seat belt and stepping out of the car. "Thanks for the ride. I'll see you in the debrief tomorrow."

"Do you need a lift in the morning?"

Sam nodded. "If you don't mind?"

"Of course not. I'll pick you up at 10.30."

"Thanks." She shut the car door and walked slowly up her drive, rummaging around for her keys as she did so.

16.03

Daniel lay down on his bed and let out a deep sigh of relief. He'd come home four hours ago but had spent the time since then pottering around his apartment tidying and doing tasks he'd felt guilty about not doing before he left - like paying his bills.

Twenty minutes later he was still lying there, staring idly at the ceiling, wide awake. "This is ridiculous," he said aloud. He felt tired, so why couldn't he sleep? The bed was a lot more comfortable than what he'd had to sleep on the last few days. The atmosphere was definitely more relaxing. It wasn't as dark as the cave though - mostly because the sun was still shining outside. He wondered if Sam was having trouble sleeping. Maybe he should go around and see how she is. He hadn't seen her before she had left the base, though someone had told him that Jack had taken her home. He would have offered too if he'd seen her. He rolled over and stared at the clock beside him. Ok, that was enough time to waste not sleeping. He got up and pulled on some clothes.

16.25

Sam lay down in the bath and let her muscles relax in the warm, scented water. She let thoughts drift in and out of her mind and slowly began to process what had happened the last few days.

Fifteen minutes later she woke with a start as the doorbell rang. Chiding herself for falling asleep in the bath she scrabbled out and grabbed a dressing gown, paying attention to the plastered hand to make sure it kept dry.

She made her way downstairs and opened the door as Daniel was turning to leave.

He looked her up and down and wondered whether he'd had an ulterior motive for coming round. Granted he hadn't realised she'd be wearing so little. "Trying to drown yourself again?" He asked, grinning lightly to cover his distraction. "Sorry for interrupting you."

"Don't worry about it, I'd fallen asleep anyway. Come in." She stood back to let him into the house.

"I'm glad one of us can sleep," he said, entering the house and turning around to face her as she shut the door.

"What's up?" She asked, heading towards the kitchen and tightening her robe as she did so. Daniel followed her, noting as he did so a collection of bubbles on the back of her neck. He had an urge to wipe them off. He cleared his throat. "Don't know. I was lying on my bed staring at the ceiling for about twenty minutes before I realised I wasn't any closer to sleep than I had been when I was doing jobs around my apartment."

Sam put the kettle on with her back to Daniel, thinking about him lying on his bed. She realised he'd stopped talking and was watching her intently.

"What?" She asked, feeling a slight blush rising on her neck and looking over her shoulder as he scrutinised her.

"You've got some bubbles on your neck." He said, coming across the kitchen to stand behind her. He reached up and slowly wiped them off, his hand feeling cold against her warm, damp skin. Sam closed her eyes as he touched her and a small tingle went down her spine. His hand lingered on the back of her neck and as he inhaled he could smell the lavender from the bubble bath mixture. She turned around slowly to face him and looked up at him. They stood looking at each other for a few seconds, Sam's wide blue eyes mirroring the emotion in Daniel's. The kettle clicked as the water in it reached boiling point.

"Do you want a hot chocolate?" Sam said quietly, almost afraid of breaking the silence in the room.

"Yeah, please." Daniel stepped back slightly from her and watched her make two cups up.

Sam handed one to him before picking up her own and gesturing towards the living room. He led the way out and sat down softly on the sofa as Sam sat down next to him.

He took a sip of his drink. "Just so you know, I didn't come around here to…" He drifted off awkwardly.

Sam smiled at Daniel's conscience and took a sip of her own drink to hide it. "Why did you come round?"

"Because I couldn't sleep, and I wondered what you were up to."

Sam laughed and Daniel looked at her. "What's funny?" He asked, a smile of his own playing on his lips.

"What if I'd been asleep? Actually I was, but it's a good thing you did wake me as I was in the bath."

They slowly sipped at their drinks in silence. Sam wondered what to do with Daniel now he was here. Then she blushed at her choice of phrasing. Daniel wondered why he had come, and also why he was feeling slightly awkward in Sam's presence. They'd entered new territory after their admissions in the cave he realised – strayed out of the comfort zone of friendship. He hoped they soon relaxed again.

"If you can't sleep, do you want to stay here tonight?" Sam broke the silence and looked at Daniel steadily, almost surprised at how bold her own voice seemed. She was trying to shift the strange tension that had come over them.

"Why does this suddenly feel awkward and forced?" Daniel asked, voicing both their thoughts.

"I don't know. It didn't in the cave."

"No."

Sam put her mug down and turned to face Daniel. "You know I said that I loved you?" Daniel nodded. "I meant it."

"I did too. I do." Daniel corrected himself and put down his own mug. "So where do we go from here?"

"Upstairs I hope, I'm feeling shattered."

Daniel laughed at Sam's reply. "That's not what I meant."

"I know. But I'm sure things will be clearer in the morning. Right now I just need to rest, as I'm sure you do. Come on."

She stood up and took hold of Daniel's hand. He followed her up the stairs slowly and she led him to the bedroom. "I've probably got an old t-shirt that'll fit you somewhere." She rooted around in a cupboard. "Here." She handed him an old military issue cotton t shirt. "I'll just go drain the bath."

She left the room and Daniel undressed, pulling on the t-shirt. It was slightly loose on him and he couldn't imagine how Sam had ended up with it. He took off his trousers as Sam re-entered the room in a cami top and shorts. She climbed into bed and he followed, lying on his back and staring at the ceiling. "Well, your ceiling has a nicer pattern than mine."

Sam rolled over to face him, studying his face in the light of the evening. He copied her movements and watched her watching him.

"It feels strange to be in bed when it's still light outside." She remarked, glancing at the closed curtains that the light still shone through.

Daniel nodded, feeling drowsy.

Sam watched him as his eyes slowly shut and she smiled to herself as he fell asleep. She was glad that he felt safe and comfortable in her presence. It was nice to return the favour after the cave. She moved closer to him and shut her own eyes, soon fast asleep.


	6. Day 4

**A/N Bet you all thought I'd forgotten about this. How wrong you are! No, no, I have a genuine excuse for my lateness with the last chapter: I wiped my computer harddrive and something went wrong, so I haven't had the internet for a month and a bit. I only got back online yesterday, and look how quickly I have come on here to right (should that be 'write'? hehe) my wrongs!**

**Erm... yeah. I tried to write a sex scene. There's a reason this hasn't happened before...**

06.59

Daniel woke, feeling snug and warm and wondering for a minute why his bed wasn't hard and cold. He opened his eyes to a shock of blonde hair glistening in the early morning light, and smiled as he realised Sam had wrapped herself around him during the night. He lay for a few minutes looking at her. She looked so peaceful and beautiful it was hard to imagine that only 48 hours ago she'd been trapped in cave on the verge of collapse. The only sign that anything untoward had happened in the last few days was the cast on her arm, which looked startlingly white next to the navy of the t shirt across his chest. Sam sighed a little and stretched softly, mimicking a cat. He grinned at this small action and wondered what other private quirks only he would get to see now they were together. He liked the thought and played around with it in his head. Sam and I. Together. As a couple.

Sam opened her eyes and smiled as she recognised the body touching hers. She glanced up at Daniel and noticed he was awake, though he appeared to be thinking hard.

"Good morning," she whispered, watching his eyes focus on hers. "You look deep in thought."

"I was thinking about you."

"Really? All nice I hope."

"Of course."

Sam's fingers stroke idly at the cotton shirt beneath them and she pulled the duvet higher around her with her free arm. "How do you feel today?" She asked, snuggling closer to him.

"Great. I slept like a log."

"Me too."

Daniel slipped his arms around Sam and pulled her on top of him, flashing a cheeky smile that made her heart beat a little faster. She responded in kind and wrapped her legs round him as she moved in for a kiss, lingering momentarily to study his response. Daniel closed the gap and their lips met with the same passion as they had done in the cave a few days earlier. He softly rolled them over so that he was on top and ran his hands through Sam's hair as they kissed. She still smelt of lavender and he remembered the bubbles.

Sam paused in her kissing as Daniel brushed his fingers smoothly over the sensitive spot on her neck where the bubbles had been the night before. Her hands ran over the shadow of stubble on his jaw line and snaked around his neck, copying his movements on hers. He murmured his appreciation and let his hands run down the curve of her back.

The two of them slowly stripped each other by the light of the early morning, their hands freely exploring each other now the clothes were scattered on the floor around the bed.

Sam savoured every touch; every feeling; every sound as her skin made repeated contact with Daniel's. This was what she had dreamed about all those years ago. The real thing was much better than what she had imagined though. Her breath became ragged as Daniel's hands moved lower down her body, tracing intricate patterns as they went. His own breathing matched hers and she slowly placed kisses along his neck. His hands found what they were searching for and she inhaled deeply as he meticulously stroked her skin, his fingers hovering over areas when she let out a short gasp of breath.

"Daniel?" Her voice came out thick and husky and she smiled lazily as he paused and looked into her eyes. "Why didn't we do this sooner?"

He grinned back and responded with small kisses along her jaw. "Guess the timing wasn't right." He whispered quietly into her ear.

He slowly slipped inside her and she shifted to accommodate him more easily as he began to thrust slowly. This wasn't going to be rushed, he thought to himself. He was going to do it properly and make sure Sam never want to leave him. Even as he thought that he doubted she ever would.

"I love you," he murmured quietly, his eyes locking on hers.

"I love you too."

The pace changed and their breathing deepened as both of them fell over the edge, holding each other close until their heart rates had slowed.

"If I'd known making love to you would be like that, I'd have done it years ago," Daniel whispered hoarsely, lying back onto the bed and gathering Sam into his embrace.

Sam's warm cheeks pressed against his chest and he could feel her smile against his damp skin.

08.42

"Sam?"

They'd been lying in the same position for the past few hours, just enjoying each other's presence.

"Hmmm?" She replied, realising she'd been dozing.

"What's going to happen at work?"

"I spoke to General Hammond yesterday and he doesn't have a problem with us." Sam said casually, aware of how her response might seem.

Daniel grinned. "You've already spoken to the General about it?"

Sam turned to look at him, her smile reflecting his. "I just wanted to know how illegal it was going to be."

Daniel glanced over at the clock beside the bed.

"Do you want a shower?"

10.15

"Daniel, if you keep doing that I'm going to burn this." Sam stated.

Daniel paused from running his hands through her damp hair and kissing her neck to look at the omelette in the pan.

"It is burning."

Sam opened her eyes and looked at the eggs. Smoke curled up from the edges of the pan. "Damn." She unstuck the omelette from the metal and lifted one edge up with a spatula. The bottom of the eggs was the same colour as the black pan. Daniel laughed.

"Do you want me to make breakfast?" He asked cheekily, stepping back as Sam waved the spatula at him.

"You're distracting me" she said accusingly, before chucking the omelette into the bin.

Daniel flexed his fingers. "Allow me madam" he said in a French accent. With flourish and wink at her, he cracked eggs into a bowl and started mixing them.

Sam watched him for a few moments, before moving behind him and slipping her arms around his waist. "We'll see how well you cope with the distraction" she murmured in his ear before nuzzling his neck.

Jack pulled up outside Sam's house and switched off the ignition. He wondered whether he could get a cup of coffee before they headed over to the base. Climbing out of the car he looked up at her house and was surprised to see Daniel's car parked on the drive. Had he offered her a lift to work as well? He walked up the drive and rang the doorbell.

In the kitchen, Daniel paused in his omelette making as the doorbell rang. "Expecting anyone?" He enquired as Sam froze, her arms still wrapped around his waist.

She muttered an expletive and stepped away from him. "I completely forgot, Jack said he was going to drive me to work."

"Why?" Daniel asked, turning back to the omelette. He felt slightly uncomfortable about Jack, but not sure why. He knew Sam didn't like her CO the way the rumours suggested she did, but still.

"He brought me home. Didn't want me riding a bike with an arm in plaster." She said distractedly, exiting the kitchen and heading to the front door.

Jack looked up as the door swung open and Sam looked at him. Was there guilt in his 2IC's eyes?  
"Hey Carter. What's up?"

"Nothing sir." She paused, and then remembered her manners. "Come in. I've not eaten yet. Do you want some coffee?"

He nodded and stepped into the house, wondering at her strange behaviour. Following her into the kitchen he noticed a smell of burning, before seeing Daniel casually cooking.

"Morning, Daniel. Thought I saw your car outside."

Daniel glanced at Sam and Jack saw a look pass between them. His suspicions raised by this odd behaviour he looked at them both again and thought about the car on the driveway.

"Have you two got something you want to tell me?" He asked when he realised neither of them were going to speak.

"Sam and I are…" started Daniel.

"We love each other." Sam stated.

Jack looked at them, and then at the omelette. "That's burning." He said irrelevantly to Daniel, who swore and began scraping it furiously. "What about the frat regs? SG1?"

"General Hammond doesn't think it's a problem. I spoke to him about it yesterday. We only just… sorted it out sir."

Jack processed this bit of information. "So SG1 will stay the same?"

Sam nodded. "Unless we get married."

Daniel looked up from putting the omelette in the bin and met Jack's eyes. Jack grinned. "Excellent."

Sam and Daniel looked at each other. "What?" Daniel asked, not believing his ears.

Jack looked at his friends and grinned at them both. "I'm very happy for you. Of course that might change if you don't name your first child after me…"  
They laughed and Jack winked and looked at the now empty pan. "Have we got time for me to show you two how to make a proper breakfast? You can probably smell the burning five blocks away."

**The End!**

**A/N2 So there we go - an unashamedly fluffy ending! But never fear, I will be posting a new fic soon. In the mean time, feel free to entertain yourselves (and me) by writing your own fics!**


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